What We So Keenly Long For

Heaven is not here; it's There.  If we were given all we wanted here, our hearts would settle for this world rather than the next.  God is forever luring us up and away from this one, wooing us to Himself and His still invisible Kingdom, where we will certainly find what we so keenly long for.
~ Elisabeth Elliot

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.
~ Philippians 3:20

Seed, Yeast

When we see things we believe need to be changed, most of us are impatient to see them done at once.  The kingdom of God does not operate spectacularly, with a sudden rush of irresistible force, but rather like seed and yeast.  These are small and wholly unimpressive and go to work only when buried.  They need an appropriate medium in which to generate change, but the life-principle is there, latent but powerful, ready to begin the slow and marvelous process of transformation.


Our prayers for change--in people, in situations--are summed up in the old petition, "Thy kingdom come"--but when we ask for that, we are asking for what may seem an excruciatingly drawn-out business.  We will need the patience of the farmer and the baker who, having done the one thing needful, then quietly (and with calm faith) wait for the thing to happen.
~ Elisabeth Elliot,
from A Lamp for My Feet

He told them another parable:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.  Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."


He told them still another parable:  "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough."
~ Matthew 13:31-33

Security

Once we have set ourselves to be pilgrims and strangers on the earth, which is what Christians are meant to be, it is incongruous for us to continue to insist upon the sort of security the world tries to guarantee.  Our security lies not in protecting ourselves from suffering, but in putting ourselves fully into the hands of God.  The desire for physical and material security makes us sly and hard.  No.  We must be like little children.  The child in its father's arms is not worried.  It lies quietly at rest because it trusts its father.


We disobey sometimes because we say it is impossible to do what God asks.  Impossible?  Perhaps what we mean is impossible to do that and keep our security, impossible to obey without tremendous cost, or at least tremendous risk.  Where, then, will we find safety?  Is it likely that we will find it elsewhere than in the arms of the Father?


Teach me to rest in your everlasting arms.  Make me know that all other security is illusion.
~ Elisabeth Elliot

The eternal God is your refuge,
and underneath are the everlasting arms.
~ Deut. 33:27a

Well Content to Be Weak

An Elisabeth Elliot devotional,

with my thoughts interjected.

What weakness are you feeling today?...

Too many to describe.

A sense of inadequacy for some task laid upon you?...

Yes, yes, and yes. I always feel inadequate for my roles of wife, mother, homemaker, etc. Especially the mother one. Ani lo maspiqah.

Christ has been there before you. Every form of human limitation He knew, and out of that utter poverty we have been made strong. Yet, again and again, in the life of each disciple, comes the experience of weakness in order that we may live His life for others...

Again and again? Does it have to be that way? I'd like to just conquer this obstacle and be done with it once and for all and never be weak again!

This sharing of His weakness is one aspect of the death of the cross, one of the conditions of our discipleship, and hence cause for joy rather than bitterness...

I'd rather think about other aspects of the death of the cross--like the reward waiting us in heaven because of Christ's blood shed for us. But OK, I'll try to be joyful about the frailty of my human condition and not be bitter.

For we walk the road, not alone, but with Christ, "well content to be weak at any time if only you are strong" (2 Cor. 13:9 NEB)...

Thank You, Jesus, that You walk with me on this demanding journey.

The mystery is constantly being worked out--strength out of weakness, life out of death.

Lord, may any success I have along the way, any strength that flows from me, any joy that is evident to the world--may it be obvious that it comes from You, and not from my own self.

Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you.

~ 2 Corinthians 13:4b

The Sun Rises Because...

We assume the sun will always rise. It always has. But it rises because God continues to will it so, not because it must in and of itself. I breathe, not because I am a smoothly functioning breathing machine, but because He who holds my breath in His hand wills me to breathe...

The sun does no choosing. God chooses--every morning so far--to make it rise. Yet the Lord of the universe asks me to choose to follow Him--to participate, as Christ did, in the flowing action which is His will. "Dwell in my love. If you heed my commands, you will dwell in my love, as I have heeded my Father's commands and dwell in His love" (John 15:10 NEB).

~ Elisabeth Elliot

from A Lamp for My Feet

Take Strength

You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

~ 2 Timothy 2:1

These strong, simple words can be spiritual adrenaline for us when we need them. They were written by a man who knew what he was talking about, as he himself was in prison. He was writing to a young minister who was also suffering and evidently tempted by doubt, fear, even uncertainty of his call. The older man admonishes him very lovingly to take his share of suffering, take his share of hardship like a good soldier, and to take strength from the grace of God (2 Tim. 2:1 NEB).

Where shall I ever find the strength I need to get through this experience, this ordeal, this day, this week? The answer is Take it! Take it from the grace which is ours already, in Christ Jesus.

"Here it is," He is saying, "Will you have some?"

"Yes, thank You, Lord. I'll take it."

~ Elisabeth Elliot

from A Lamp for My Feet

Something Special in Life

Most of us would like to do something special in life, something to distinguish us. We suppose that we desire it for God's sake, but more likely we are discontent with ordinary life and crave special privileges. When Israel asked if they should offer some spectacular sacrifice--thousands of rams, ten thousand "rivers of oil," a firstborn child--the answer was, "He has showed you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8 RSV).

There is nothing conspicuous about those requirements. It is not a "special" service for which one would be likely to be decorated or even particularly remembered. But it is worth more to God than any sacrifice.

Lord, deliver me from the delusion of imagining that my desire is to serve You, when my real desire is the distinction of serving in some way which others admire.

~ Elisabeth Elliot,

from A Lamp for My Feet

An Antidote for Pride

The basis of all sin of whatever kind is pride. This was what inspired the disobedience of Adam and Eve, and it is always with us. One very common form it takes is the pride of privilege. When a man is given a special position, he forgets that it was given. He becomes proud, as though "his own arm" had gotten him the victory.

God knows well the heart and made provision for this sin of pride when He instructed the Israelites about appointing a king. He was to make a copy of the law. This would be the antidote, necessary for him and likewise for all of us (for "law" read "Word").

...The attempt itself to keep the commandments, one by one and day after day, will be sufficient to humble us, for the "straightedge of the law" (Rom. 3:20 JBP) will only show us, as Paul found, how crooked we are. We will find, in fact, that we cannot keep it. "The whole matter is on a different plane--believing instead of achieving" (Rom. 3:27 JBP). Pride won't find much foothold on that plane.

"The real test of being in the presence of God is that you either forget about yourself altogether or see yourself as a small, dirty object. It is better to forget about yourself altogether" (C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity).

~ Elisabeth Elliot

When he [the king] takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees and not consider himself better than his brothers and turn from the law to the right or to the left.

~ Deuteronomy 17:19-20

Step One

To be transformed into the image of Christ, I must begin to do the will of the Father in the same place where He began: He emptied Himself. There is for any serious disciple, quite simply, no other starting place. It is a matter of beginning today to say no to yourself--specifically, about something you've been insisting you must have, specifically about something you have been refusing. This is step one.

~ Elisabeth Elliot

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,

did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

but made himself nothing...

~ Philippians 2:5-7

The Moat of His Protection

God is our Refuge, our Strength, our Mighty Fortress. Nothing will get by the moat of his protection without his permission. To be afraid of what happens today or what may happen tomorrow is not only an awful waste of energy, it is not only useless, it is disobedient. We are forbidden to fear anything but the Lord Himself...Will power, of course, will not always overcome human emotions. But willed obedience to the One who is in charge, coupled with prayer for his help in vanquishing our natural fears, is something else.

~ Elisabeth Elliot

Don't worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.

~ Philippians 4:6-7 (CEV)

Put On the Right Clothes

Nuggets of truth and inspiration continue to pop up from Colossians. Here's another one...

Only certain costumes suit Christians. To be otherwise dressed is inappropriate.

Put on the garments that suit God's chosen people, his own, his beloved: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience (Col. 3:12 NEB).

Put on the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom. 13:14 RSV).

You have all put on Christ as a garment (Gal. 3:27 NEB).

You must put on the new nature of God's creating (Eph. 4:24 NEB).

You have discarded the old nature with its deeds and have put on the new nature (Col. 3:10 NEB).

Put on love (Col. 3:14 RSV).

The clothes we wear are what people see. Only God can look on the heart. The outward signs are important. They reveal something of what is inside. If charity is there, it will become visible outwardly, but if you have no charitable feelings, you can still obey the command. Put it on as simply and consciously as you put on a coat. You choose it; you pick it up; you put it on. This is what you want to wear.

Do you want to dress like a Christian? Put on Christ. The act of honest obedience--the fruit of love for Christ--is your part. Making you Christlike through and through is his part.

~ Elisabeth Elliot

from A Lamp for My Feet

Obedience Is Not Contingent

One of the places where I find manna is a daily email devotional from Elisabeth Elliot, sent out by Back to the Bible. I appreciate the fact that every morning, as I sleepily nurse Shav, a piece of manna is waiting for me in my email inbox; and I can turn on my laptop and gather it as easy as anything.

I really liked the one for today. (I feel that way almost every day!) Elisabeth writes:

Obedience Is Not Contingent

The making of comparisons is a dangerous business for a Christian. Each of us must give account, not of his neighbor, but of himself to God. To the workers who, under the guise of a concern for fairness, objected to an equal wage being paid to those who began the job at different hours of the day, the owner said, "Why be jealous because I am kind?" (Mt. 20:15 NEB).

To the brother of the prodigal son, put out because this wastrel was being wined and dined, the father said, "My boy, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. How could we help celebrating this happy day?" (Lk. 15:31,32 NEB).

To Peter, hesitant to follow the Lord until he found out what was going to be required of the other disciple, Jesus said, "If it should be my will that he wait until I come, what is it to you? Follow me" (Jn. 21:22 NEB).

The spirit of godly obedience is not in us; our wills have not been unconditionally turned over to the Master, as long as we determine our own action by what others do. To husbands God says (unconditionally), "Love your wives." To wives he says (unconditionally), "Submit to your husbands."* If each lets his obedience be contingent upon the other's, there is a standoff. The command to husbands is the business of husbands. The command to wives is the business of wives. Let each "mind his own"--direct his attention to the thing required of him--and harmony will be the result.

"There must be no limit to your goodness, as your heavenly Father's goodness knows no bounds" (Mt. 5:48 NEB).

* Many wives consider their own cases exceptional. Since no exceptions are mentioned in this passage, I conclude that a wife must be very sure she has a scriptural warrant before disobeying, e.g., if her husband desires her to act in a way clearly forbidden by scripture.

I'm quite familiar with all of the verses Elisabeth uses, but I've never grouped them together in such a way as to see their common theme. It reminds me, however, of how Jeff and I talk when we're counseling couples about the way in which some people think a relationship should be 50/50. "I'll meet you halfway, and then we'll have peace." But what happens when one spouse only gives 45 percent? And who in the world is the judge to say when I've reached 50 percent anyway?

A much more effective--not to mention, Biblical--way to approach relationships is 100/100. "I'll give you 100 percent. I'll be willing to do anything. I'll pour out my all so that, wherever you are, we'll meet in the middle. If you're at 30 percent, I'll give 70. If you're at 2 percent, I'll give 98. Maybe next week, I'll be struggling along at 19 percent, and you can give 81."

May I be willing to give 100 percent. May I not wait until someone else obeys before I follow suit. May there be no limit to my goodness.

Night Wakings and Dying to Self

I've been a little--no, truth be told, more than a little--discouraged recently about Shav's continued night wakings; but these words spoke to my heart and helped me to embrace the self-sacrifice required to care for him when he awakes:

An older missionary said something to Amy Carmichael when she was a young missionary that stayed with her for life. She had spoken of something which was not to her liking. His reply was, "See in it a chance to die."

~ Elisabeth Elliot

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it."

~ Matthew 16:24-25

My Goal? YOUR Interests!

If a marriage counselor were to ask each partner, "What are your goals?" and the answer were, "How can I best serve my husband or wife? What can I do to further his or her goals?" the counseling period would be over, the bill low. Any two people, any community of Christians who set themselves to look only to the other's interest would be a rare and radiant thing, shining, as Paul said, "like stars in a dark world" (Phil. 2:15 NEB).

~ Elisabeth Elliot

...then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

~ Philippians 2:2-4